August 27, 2014
01:00 PM (EDT)

News Release Number: STScI-2014-37

NASA Telescopes Help Uncover Early Construction Phase of Giant Galaxy

August 27, 2014: The birth of massive galaxies, according to galaxy formation theories, begins with
the buildup of a dense, compact core that is ablaze with the glow of millions of
newly formed stars. Evidence of this early construction phase, however, has
eluded astronomers until now. Astronomers identified a dense galactic core,
dubbed "Sparky," using a combination of data from Hubble and Spitzer, other space telescopes, and the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii. Hubble photographed the
emerging galaxy as it looked 11 billion years ago, just 3 billion years after the
birth of our universe in the big bang.

This illustration reveals the celestial fireworks deep inside the crowded core of a
developing galaxy, as seen from a hypothetical planetary system. The sky is
ablaze with the glow from nebulae, fledgling star clusters, and stars exploding as
supernovae. The rapidly forming core may eventually become the heart of a
mammoth galaxy similar to one of the giant elliptical galaxies seen today.